jasmine johnson photography

my blog has moved!

2010-04-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

please click on over to my new blog location:

http://www.jasminejohnsonphotography.com/blog

fresh faces contest | san luis obispo child photographer

2010-03-22T14:41:00.000-07:00

i'm excited to announce a contest to take advantage of this gorgeous spring season here on the central coast!

if you've been thinking about scheduling a portrait session with jasmine johnson photography, now is your chance to win one! the winner of this contest will receive:

an on-location mini-session (30-45 minutes)
5 digital images on disc
five 5x7 prints
a $425 value!
session must be held by may 31

over the next two weeks, i'll collect entry pictures of your cute kiddos for this contest. starting the week of april 5, voting will begin on this blog. you can vote once a day for your favorite kid - and send your friends and family here to do the same! voting will last one week.

to enter, please email a recent picture of your child to me: jasmine@jasminejohnsonphotography.com. in your email, please include your name, phone number and your child's name and age (this information will not be used on my blog, just the picture will be posted.) i recommend submitting just ONE image. you'll be allowed to vote just once a day, and you won't want to split your votes between your kiddos! *depending on the number of entries, i may bring in help to pre-screen the entries - i cannot guarantee that your entry will be included in the contest (but i'll try to get them all in, i promise!)

kirk & libby, joel, caleb and leif | morro bay family photography

2010-03-15T16:39:00.000-07:00

after this session, i'm convinced that if my two kids were boys, i'd likely be 15 pounds thinner :) joel and caleb just ate up the camera (and my fruit snacks!) leif was a little more of a challenge (as all 1 1/2 year olds are!) but i managed to catch him a few times.

baby ryan | santa maria newborn photography

2010-03-03T21:40:00.000-08:00

sweet mister ryan is just six days new. the calmest, sleepiest baby i've met to date. he was a week and a half overdue and his family couldn't be happier that he's finally here.

look at those smiling eyes!

for ryan's daddy:

miss marley | san luis obispo baby photography

2010-02-27T22:19:00.000-08:00

sweet miss marley is just over four months old. i really love these black and white images. i think each one could possibly be a different child - but really it's just a different aspect of this little one's personality shining through.

just us | pismo family photography

2010-02-24T08:13:00.000-08:00

i've had clients say that they think pictures at the beach are cliche. maybe, but i think a session with me is always unique.

jimmie, the girls and i headed down to the pier the other night to enjoy this amazing place where we live.

tatianna | santa maria senior photography

2010-02-22T08:41:00.000-08:00

the hubs | week 8/52

2010-02-15T20:41:00.000-08:00

i spend so much time photographing other people's families, sometimes my own gets a little neglected, especially my husband jimmie. i made sure to include him in the pics i took tonight at the beach (more to come from tonight, i hope!)

amazing! | week 7/52

2010-02-11T15:39:00.000-08:00

after an unusually rainy january, this week's summer-like weather is refreshing and surprising! now i await the fog :)

attention high school juniors!

2010-02-06T14:48:00.000-08:00

static | week 6/52

2010-02-04T13:16:00.000-08:00

my daughter logan at the park this week... i'm loving the intense look and her wild hair from the static of the slide.

wonderful saturday | arroyo grande child photography

2010-01-31T21:22:00.000-08:00

yesterday i held an afternoon of valentine mini sessions... to my surprise, boys were five of my six subjects! these sessions were a ton of fun for me. i wasn't trying different locations and poses with these kids for an hour, we just ran around for 15 minutes, told jokes and got lots of genuine smiles (and sparkly eyes, wow!)

cutie zeke... so much more interested in rearranging the gravel driveway than in smiling for me, we caught a few adorable looks.

noah clearly loves the camera... and the camera returns the love. can you believe those eyelashes?

seriously. this kid is a heartbreaker.

noah's little brother levi. quiet and a little silly, i'm pretty sure he's just too cool for me.

love the brother love.

do families get more gorgeous than this?

willa. this girl has the most beautiful, sparkly brown eyes possible. (can you see the reflection of me and the sky in there?)

her brother breger. i hope he and noah never end up in the same class, the girls might just explode from these boys' cuteness.

and skyler. exuberant and thoughtful at the same time. this image is a new favorite of mine, i think.

two princesses | week 5/52

2010-01-30T23:31:00.001-08:00

looking up | week 4/52

2010-01-20T21:30:00.000-08:00

i love this view

lindsey | sean | gracie | lily | silas | san luis obispo family photography

2010-01-18T19:45:00.000-08:00

what a fantastic way to start a new year of family portraits! lindsey and sean have the cutest, sweetest kids (okay, maybe i fall in love with all the kids i photograph?) the most wonderfully decorated house - i want to move in. and they were all about casual, unposed pictures. such a fun, silly, easy session.

lindsey runs a lovely online shop called the pleated poppy. check it out if you have any girls in your life who need a gift :)

so...... on to the pics:

bathtime | week 3/52

2010-01-14T18:27:00.000-08:00

there's nothing better than bath time around here. sisters get along, giggle, laugh and splash, and everyone comes out smelling sweet and ready for bed.

february promotion | arroyo grande child photography

2010-01-14T09:10:00.003-08:00

well, i still need to catch up on lots and lots of adorable family images, but first... a special event, just in time for valentine's day:

contact me through the e-mail link above to reserve your session!

our town | week 2/52

2010-01-10T22:06:00.000-08:00

after sharing this image with a group of fellow photographers, i was told how much the signs indicate our sweet small town. i've always loved this sign. the surroundings aren't the best... lots of wires and street signs and a bus stop bench just out front, but the theater itself is great. i can smell that burning popcorn oil now.

last of the lights | week 1/52

2010-01-03T21:47:00.000-08:00

so... i'm attempting to take one 'out of the norm' image each week this year. i initially thought i'd take one per day, but i know myself too well to think that i could even CHOOSE 365 pictures for the year, let alone pick up my camera daily and find creativity. (no guarantees that i won't throw in a few images of the two most gorgeous girls i know...) on new year's day, i hadn't taken any pictures, so at 10pm i found our christmas lights to be my best subject. they would come down the next day after all. maybe light will be my theme for the year?

my kid | arroyo grande child photography

2009-12-30T23:37:00.000-08:00

just editing and catching up on personal photos and i found this image of my sweet logan from november. this image is so her. she'll pose for plenty of pretty pictures, but she's all goof :)

merry christmas!

2009-12-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

lisa | steve | matty | david | morro bay family photography

2009-11-28T08:20:00.000-08:00

i was beyond excited for the chance to photograph lisa leonard's family last weekend. i'm a big fan of her handmade jewelry and am consistently impressed with her lovely, creative daily blog.

we met up in morro bay for a fun family urban session.

matty and the trolley stop... matty is a superhero in training and is definitely faster than my camera:

i'm sure lisa and steve wondered what on earth i was doing with their son here... but they let us play, and i was rewarded with one sweet image (and a head on my shoulder peeking at the viewfinder to see himself, even superheroes have cuddly moments!)

this one just screams parenthood to me... mom & dad have everything under control:

some family randomness:

and some family sweetness:

thank you lisa and steve and matty and david! it was a joy to meet you.

head over to lisa's site and check out her gorgeous necklaces. (slip a link into your hubby's e-mail!) she's even sharing a 10% discount, just enter 'findbeauty' when you check out.

jen | john | cate | braden | arroyo grande family photography

2009-11-27T20:42:00.000-08:00

jen and i have been casually talking about doing family portraits since early this summer. for one reason or another it didn't happen until now, but i'm so happy to finally have had the chance to capture this family's personality. as usual, our session was more like running around and playing with the kids than a 'pose and say cheese' marathon (although we did get smiles out of cate by saying 'pleeease')

but this girl is just perfection without asking her to say anything cheezy:

and big brother? look at those eyes!

pure sibling sweetness. cate loves braden and braden loves cate.

aand more gorgeousness:

benjamin | nicholas | rick | kellie | arroyo grande famliy photographer

2009-11-27T20:28:00.000-08:00

this was my second opportunity to photograph this family this year (see round 1 here). we ran around behind these old barns and talked a whole lot about transformers... stuff this mama of two girls knows nearly nothing about.

sweet benjamin... these boys just shine when they get all of my attention :)

and nicholas... seriously an adorable kid

perfect autumn

2009-11-15T22:11:00.001-08:00

catching up here... i have a ton of sessions to catch up on but am still quite behind on editing... but how could i not share these amazing blue eyes???

gina | richard | madison | pismo beach family photography

2009-11-15T22:04:00.001-08:00

my favorite favorite mommy/daughter moments:

and the perfect central coast evening...

baby jake | six months later

2009-11-03T21:02:00.000-08:00

baby jake was one of my first real newborn sessions just about six months ago. i was so excited to get to see this sweet boy again today and was in awe of how big he's gotten.

at one week old:

and today:

josh and jennie are simply fun to photograph. they're gorgeous and their sweet little family is so full of love.

my funky favorite of the session:

which one? | arroyo grande family photography

2009-11-01T20:38:00.000-08:00

i can never decide which color edit i prefer... bright and colorful? black and white? desaturated antique? i think i love them all when the kids are this cute!

baby dj | santa maria newborn photography

2009-10-31T16:00:00.000-07:00

sweet baby dj... i was able to photograph him on day one and day seven of his life. remember his mama's maternity session with two friends?

i love these squished-up newborn shots:

kamrin.ben.lexi.grant.drake | paso robles famliy photography

2009-10-31T15:55:00.000-07:00

i met this gorgeous family at a winery in shandon where dad, ben, works. i had the pleasure of taking drake's one year photos (here). and was just a little mesmerized by his eyes then. it turns out that all 3 kids (and mom!) have the same stunning pale blue/green eyes.

grant absolutely hamming it up for my camera. my 4.5 year old does things like this too... i have no idea where they get it!

i often find myself saying 'pretend you like each other' - sarcastically during my sessions. i'm still not sure if it was a serious statement to lexi or not...

sydney & noah | san luis obispo family photography

2009-10-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

a few of sweet sydney and noah. they were pretty unsure of me at first, but i was thrilled to get hugs from them at the end of our session.

i love when families just go with my odd suggestions for angles... i'd love my own family portrait to look like this:

it's about the happiness | santa maria family photographer

2009-10-20T21:47:00.000-07:00

two-year-old j grabbed my hand the minute his mama opened the door to show me around his house. he was excited and exuberant and not so interested in posed shots (me neither!) but we had a blast rolling in the grass.

sweet mr m | san luis obispo newborn photography

2009-10-04T21:58:00.000-07:00

he's just perfect!

just a peek | san luis obispo family photographer

2009-10-03T22:13:00.000-07:00

waiting on baby brother | nipomo maternity photography

2009-08-29T00:49:00.000-07:00

big sister seems quite excited about welcoming a new sibling to the family :)

the fam | arroyo grande family photographer

2009-08-26T21:32:00.000-07:00

hi! i'm jasmine

i have two sweet daughters... logan is 4

and avery is 2

and of course there's the hubs

so here's how a session with me goes... we meet somewhere, i run around and act like a goof with your kids, their primary goal is not (as you might hope) to smile and look happy for the camera, at one point you think the whole session is a disaster, but i promise you it's not. kids are wonderful and spontaneous and unpredictable and they shine beautifully through lifestyle photography. nothing is more frustrating than trying to get kids to smile and say cheese for the camera, so i don't do that. so call me or email me or visit my website to see more of my work... but talk to me about getting your family in front of the camera and capture these amazing moments of childhood :)

twin boys | arroyo grande family photography

2009-08-20T21:53:00.001-07:00

doesn't this image make you want your own five year old twins?

britainy | santa maria senior photographer

2009-08-12T22:37:00.000-07:00

laid back, cool, beautiful... it was a foggy and moody afternoon but britainy just breezed through our session--changing poses in a ridiculously natural way and basically making my job easy.

holiday sessions | san luis obispo family photography

2009-08-06T01:17:00.000-07:00

sold out!

december comes early in the photography world... now is the time to start thinking about family pictures for your greeting cards. i'm offering mini-sessions from now through november 10. (this ensures your prints and cards will be ready by december 1.)

*let's do this! you'll receive a $20 print credit if you book your session in august. and talk to me about custom cards, they're gorgeous!

sweet sisters | arroyo grande baby photography

2009-08-04T21:50:00.000-07:00

i'm good friends with reagan's mama and have never, ever seen this girl cry. until today. she wanted nothing to do with sitting on the grass alone and certainly wasn't going to smile her usual toothless grin for me.

big sis riley was a bit more interested in hamming it up... she even named my camera and told him a few secrets. (she loves to play dinosaurs at school, but don't tell her i told you.)

reagan was much happier without clothes and rolling around on a nice soft bed. this girl has some gorgeous eyes!

and this next image? i could die. this could not be a more perfect, sweet moment with these girls.

baby brother | san luis obispo family and newborn photography

2009-08-01T15:46:00.000-07:00

sweet baby cameron is just sixteen days old

big brother caden was sweet and exuberant and just so fun to jump around with and capture that energy!

kyle | jake | kelly | skip | santa maria family and senior photographer

2009-07-19T08:00:00.000-07:00

part family session, part senior portraits... we had a great time laughing, climbing trees, hills and other random objects.

a few images of the graduating senior and his parents

and of course, a few solo portraits

baby sister | templeton newborn photography

2009-07-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

sweet baby delaney slept right on through 90% of our photo session. all the moves and attmepts to pose her and she snuggled right back up to fall asleep.

her adorable big sister, haley, got in on the modeling gig too.

ryen & hayden | pismo beach family photography

2009-07-17T14:53:00.000-07:00

ryen and hayden are four and two... just like my girls. this beach session was just pure fun for me. is it really work when i get to run and play in the sand with a couple of adorable kids?

summer swing | avila beach family photography

2009-07-13T23:16:00.000-07:00

what more can you ask for on a beautiful summer day than to swing as high as your heart desires?

(avery's little heart doesn't desire to swing too high...)

cutie pie | san luis obispo baby photography

2009-07-10T23:04:00.000-07:00

just editing away tonight and had to share these bright eyes, perfect creamy skin and adorable drooly mouth :)

three bellies | santa maria maternity photographer

2009-06-26T13:32:00.000-07:00

ani, alyson and alé are each due with their second baby this year. they're great friends who happen to be family--their husbands are cousins.

alyson's house is in the middle of strawberry fields. the girls' husbands are also strawberry farmers.

kyle | stacia | their boys | avila family photography

2009-06-17T09:33:00.000-07:00

birthday boy | san luis obispo baby photography

2009-06-16T23:45:00.000-07:00

this adorable boy turns one on july 7. happy, smiley, chubby, drooly--he's the perfect man!

her | boys

2009-06-08T21:40:00.000-07:00

stacia is a mom to four (4!) boys. we did part one of our session today with her three younger boys... more to come next week when we get the whole family of six together :)

baby | autumn

2009-06-07T22:27:00.000-07:00

just seven days old, little miss autumn simply wanted to be held and snuggled and nursed. i helped with two while her mama spent most of our time together taking care of the third. she was not, however, interested in sleeping for us, so the sweet-squishy-sleepy baby images that i had envisioned did not happen. oh, well, i got a smile instead!

happy | birthday | baby | girl

2009-06-05T11:52:00.000-07:00

two years, two weeks and two days after her sister, sweet miss avery was born. she is my sunshine.

an | ordinary | friday

2009-05-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

baby | hank

2009-05-30T15:18:00.000-07:00

hank is five months old and just about as cute and drooly and chubby as could be. he was a joy to spend time with this morning!

hank decided to wake his daddy and mommy up extra early this morning so they'd have plenty of time to get ready for the photo session...

early wake-up = sweet sleepy babe

my | birthday | girl

2009-05-20T15:33:00.000-07:00

happy happy birthday to my sweet four year old!

and for a little flashback...

baby | jake

2009-05-18T13:13:00.000-07:00

here's a few more from my sessions with baby jake. he's just a week old here.

i know i already posted this one, but i love it!

check out those big feet!

kai | leila | monica | jordan

2009-05-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

monica owns the salon i go to and is one of the nicest people i've ever met. her family is gorgeous and fabulous!

kai the tree climber. the image on the right is one of my favorites of the day.

another fave... leila needed a little sugar to keep going :)

girls vs. boys. a little different?

the signature goofy family shot... they were so much fun!

jake | lloyd

2009-05-15T07:58:00.000-07:00

first of all, please excuse my blog while it gets an update.

secondly... i just had to share this warm, fuzzy goodness.

reece | cara

2009-05-05T09:20:00.000-07:00

these girls were so much fun to play with! i certainly didn't anticipate a toddler/preschooler tennis session when i arrived at their house, but it was a great way for the girls to warm up to me. plus, reese has an awesome backhand!

aagh! seriously.

their beautiful mama, ilsa, got a few sweet moments with her girls

bethanni | ryan | eli | thad

2009-05-03T22:28:00.000-07:00

i will never claim that running around for an hour with a toddler and a preschooler (um, and trying to get great pictures) is easy, but i do love it! plus, i get plenty of practice in my daily life.

true to birth order personalities in my home, eli is older, more independent and exuberant. thad is beyond sweet (i adore this age), a little shy and aims to please--even if he doesn't realize it.

just when we thought eli was going to curl up on this bench and hide from me the rest of the day, he turned on the charm!

kellie | rick | benjamin | nicholas

2009-04-07T17:05:00.000-07:00

i've had my eye on this bike trail for awhile now, so when kellie told me that she wanted an outdoor, open-field location, i knew just where to go. the boys were way more interested in biking and exploring than they were in picture-taking, but who wants a bunch of posed photos anyway? their true, sweet personalities shine through here.

I love getting the parents alone--together.

baby | everley

2009-03-29T23:17:00.000-07:00

she was born just 11 days ago!

and a few shots of the rest of the adorable family

purplicious

2009-03-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

baby | reagan

2009-03-24T23:18:00.000-07:00

this sweet girl is just shy of three months old.

mike | kim | noah | levi

2009-03-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

mike, kim, noah, levi and i took a trip to the beach yesterday. it was windy and too sunny, but they look fabulous anyway!

i love these mommy & daddy moments...

airstream | family

2009-03-10T22:38:00.000-07:00

i met kelly at a birthday party and basically told her she needed to let me take pictures of her family. (be careful, i'm building my portfolio and you might be next...) clearly, i was right that i needed to take her family's photos, because they have the amazing airstream tralier as a backdrop.

kelly also has this fantastic 'camping furniture' stashed in the airstream. i fell in love! kelly, i might come over and borrow one or two chairs for future photo shoots :)

Noah's Birthday

2009-03-04T23:32:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Logan was invited to a birtday party so I brought my camera. I took a few (hundred) pix and came out with a great set of photos from the party. I think people should hire photographers more often for kids' birthday parties! You put so much time and effort into the party only to rush and get 4 photos of your kid blowing out the candles.

The birthday boy:

Gotta love babies who love the camera:

Cake time and everyone's ready:

Baby Landon

2009-03-02T15:43:00.000-08:00

Sweet Landon was born on January 31. I loved getting to spend an hour with him, getting to know his mama and smelling his sweet baby smell.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T15:07:00.000-08:00

Matt and Monica + 3

2009-02-11T23:56:00.000-08:00

I met up with Matt and Monica at their stunning house to do a shoot with their stunning family. It was really a great time hanging out with ultra-affectionate Malia, stunt-boy Makaio and sweet, beautiful (and just a little bit tempermental) Maile.

This shot of Maile is my favorite of the day:

Megan and Zack

2009-02-05T18:34:00.000-08:00

Although I'd like to say that Megan and Zack's parents dropped them with me and ran, it's not true. Brad and Kibbe were there the whole time and posed in quite a few pictures. It turns out that two and four year olds really never stop moving, and my favorite shots just happen to be of them individually.

Squish

2009-01-24T19:42:00.000-08:00

Don't you just want to squeeze her?

My girlies

2009-01-20T20:58:00.000-08:00

It's definitely the hardest for me to take pictures of my own kids. They don't want to pose for me, they want to play! But every once in awhile they share some magic:

Sweet Levi

2009-01-05T20:08:00.000-08:00

Levi is my neighbors' son. He's the only one of our kids who would stop long enough for me to take a (good) picture.

Vanessa, Ry, Tyler and Wesley

2008-12-18T19:02:00.000-08:00

Gorgeous Avila Beach, gorgeous December-in-California weather, and of course, my model-worthy friends Vanessa and Ry and two of the cutest boys ever.

Scott, Stacey, Lily and Corbin

2008-12-15T20:29:00.000-08:00

This was Scott and Stacey's Christmas card shoot. They're a beautiful family (check out everyone's blue eyes!) and I had a great time running around with them at the beach!

Corbin and Lily did so great posing and smiling for me, we had to throw a few silly shots in.

icon

2008-05-15T12:31:00.000-07:00